Does Stretching Work?

Stretching. Ah, stretching. We all know we should do it more often for our tight hip flexors (whatever those even are). Right?
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Here is a sample of a static stretching routine that I made for a high school athletic team I work with.

Stretching has been on and off popular for decades. Many have touted its miraculous ability to “lengthen tight muscles” whereas others claim it to be a futile effort.

I sit somewhere in between. It is hard to know, even for those of us who have degrees in the field, advanced certifications, and loads of experience. Just looking through my bookshelf I found a variety of different opinions on the topic of stretching.

For example, in Stretching Anatomy written by Arnold G. Nelson and Juoko Kokkonen, they preface to book with the notes.

"Several chronic training benefits can be gained through a regular stretching program:
-Improved flexibility, stamina (muscular endurance), and muscular strength
-Reduced muscle soreness
-Improved muscle and joint mobility
-More efficient muscular movements and fluidity of motion
-Prevention of some lower back problem
-Improved appearance and self-image
-Improved body alignment and posture
-Better warm-up and cool-down in an exercise session
-Improved maintenance of blood glucose"

Other opinions such as in the book, Becoming a Supple Leopard, Kelly Starrett diplomatically states,

“When I say ‘stretching,’ I’m referring specifically to end-range static stretching, or hanging out in an end-range static position with zero intention. I’m talking about purposeless stretching. Consider the classic hamstring stretch: You lie on your back, grab your ankle, pull you hamstring to end-range, and then hang out while you dreamily watch the geese overhead flying south for the winter. This type of ‘stretching’ can theoretically ‘lengthen’ your hamstring, but doesn’t teach you - or your coach - anything about your motor-control or your ability to get your hamstring to end-range and keeping it there is not going to help you run faster or change your capacity to deadlift more weight. Yet when most people have a tissue or joint restriction that prevents them from getting into a good position, they think, ‘Man, I suck! I need to Stretch.’”

Another opinion from Pavel Tstatsuline (the man who popularized kettlebells in America) blasphemes traditional static stretching. In his book, Relax Into Stretch (great name, huh?), he writes,

“Stretching in America is a cult. Every fitness-junkie guru preaches flexibility. They growl, they drool and they promise hell to the infidels who don't or won’t stretch. Yet the stretching methods they offer are at best laughable, at worst dangerous.”

The ex-Soviet special-ops trainer then goes on to explain,

“Comrade, it is not short muscles and connective tissues that make you tight; it is your nervous system, ‘the muscle software’ that refuses to let your muscles to slide out to their true full length!”

These are just three of many books on my shelf that go into the topic of stretching.

And then there is Yoga which has been teaching ’stretching’ for thousands of years!

Yea, so this goes a lot deeper than just go into a position and feel a ‘stretch.’ It is a never ending conversation of stretching, mobilizing, releasing, nervous system, control, ballistic, static, dynamic, cellular change, muscles, joint capsules, etc. . . So how the heck do we do it? Why would we do it?

In my opinion, static stretching as we know if probably won’t “lengthen” our muscles. They’re probably long enough already, but our systems are presenting as “tight” for a number of reasons. I do believe that static stretching can provide at least three benefits:

1. Static stretching can help us put our body into positions in which we do not regularly find ourselves in. When we can use our joints and muscles in positions of what should be normal capacity, it is useful to us (because we normally don’t). In these positions that we should biologically or anatomically have access to, we can observe tightness, asymmetries, or other “hitches” that we can then use another system to normalize them. While passively stretching our bodies into positions can help us feel and learn, we really should learn motor control to accomplish it intrinsically.
2. Another benefit to static stretching is that it can help us relax. It is no surprise that many of us are in high stress, sympathetic states more often than we should be. It is difficult for many of us to relax. Stretching, lying down on the ground, focusing on one task, perhaps just one part of your body, can help regulate your breathe and mental stress to help bring you into a more parasympathetic state.
3. Static Stretching may not work, but it may. If you are a complete beginner, you never stretch, and  you don't really workout either, static stretching may actually increase your "flexibility." Again, your muscles probably aren't getting longer, but putting muscles through ranges of motion, bringing in blood flow, and practicing motor control may very well increase the feeling of "flexibility." 

So should we do static stretches?

My answer, “Sure. But, take it for what it is." Don’t expect to just bend over, attempt to touch your toes, expect to cure back pain and gain the ability to do the splits. It's more situational and semantical. 

If you want to cure back pain or do the splits, you’ll certainly need to dive a good bit deeper into movement patterns, anatomical positioning, proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation, theory of yoga, Functional Range Conditioning programming, etc. . . If that’s your prerogative, more power to you, but for most of us, moving more often and trying some new activities will help us feel more physically capable.

TL:DR
Sometimes stretching just feels good.